There was nothing easy about it, but the Gary Carter era in Chambersburg is off to a 1-0 start.
Carter — a long-time assistant now holding the program reins as head coach — guided his squad to a 27-15 victory over Gettysburg on Friday night at Trojan Stadium. Chambersburg toppled the Warriors despite being outgained in yards, 346-264.
How did the Trojans do it? The answer is simple: Forcing turnovers.
Chambersburg took the ball away from Gettysburg five times, with the Trojans getting interceptions from Isaiah Tasker, Mason Mowen, and Brodie Robinson, and fumble recoveries from Seth Gilliam and Arron Ward. It was just enough for the Trojans to stave off a Warriors squad that was otherwise making plays and seemed prime to spring the upset over Chambersburg on its own field.
Gettysburg’s Preston Burnett, the Warriors’ all-time leading rusher, was held to 83 yards on 25 carries by the Trojan defense. Burnett’s counterpart at running back, Chambersburg’s Malachi Tasker, piled up 67 yards on 17 carries. Trojans QB Ceagan Truett had an accurate and clean day in the pocket, completing 14 of 19 passes for 187 yards and two TDs.
It was Truett who scored Chambersburg’s first TD of the season, when he plunged into the end zone from one yard out to give the Trojans a 6-0 lead. The Trojans doubled that lead to 12-0 in the second quarter when Isaiah Tasker returned an interception 31 yards for a score.
Gettysburg climbed back into the game with a 10-yard scoring run from Burnett before halftime, but Chambersburg found itself with a commanding 20-6 lead in the third quarter following a 25-yard scoring strike from Truett to Isaiah Tasker.
The game, however, was far from over.
Gettysburg struck for nine points over the span of seven seconds in the fourth quarter. First, the Warriors cashed in on a safety. Then, after getting the ball back, Gettysburg immediately found the end zone on a 35-yard pass from Grant Johnson to Trevor Cunningham. Following a successful extra point, Gettysburg trailed by just five points, 20-15, with 9:32 to play.
Chambersburg sealed victory late, with Truett delivering his second TD pass of the evening to Davonte Scott, who led the Trojans with 89 receiving yards on five catches.
Chambersburg (1-0) is set to kick off its Mid-Penn Commonwealth Division schedule on Friday, when it hosts CD East on Friday. The Panthers (1-0) opened their season with a 36-20 victory over York.
Waynesboro 27, Greencastle-Antrim 21
Waynesboro made multiple big plays to surge to victory over Greencastle-Antrim for the second-straight season.
The Tribe got two bruising TD runs from senior Kean Baumgardner, who totaled 82 yards on 12 carries, while his teammate Steven Howard intercepted two passes. Mitch Torbica added a pair of fumble recoveries for Waynesboro.
The Tribe marched off to a 6-0 lead following a 10-play, 74-yard drive that was capped by a two-yard scoring run from Baumgardner. The Blue Devils, however, needed just one play to take a 7-6 advantage: A 58-yard TD scamper from Blake Reuter.
Waynesboro QB Rayshawn Frazer-Hewitt, who completed 10 of 16 passes for 186 yards, delivered the first of two passing TDs with a 41-yard scoring strike to Jeremiah Murray. The play gave The Tribe a 12-7 lead, but once again, Greencastle had an answer: A 43-yard TD pass from Lane Barry to Noah Shifflett to put the Blue Devils ahead 14-12 at halftime.
That score held until about mid-way through the fourth quarter, when Frazer-Hewitt delivered a pass in the flats to Christian Munday, who powered 76 yards down the right sideline to help give the Tribe a 20-12 lead. Waynesboro seized the ball on the ensuing kickoff, and cashed in on the turnover with a four-yard TD scamper from Baumgardner.
The Blue Devils scored once more with 1:48 remaining on a 25-yard TD pass from Gavin Logsdon to Kyle Ramirez to cut into the lead, 27-21, but the clock ran out before Greencastle could get the ball again.
The Blue Devils were highlighted by the efforts of Reuter, who totaled 111 yards on 11 carries, averaging 10.1 yards per tote. Waynesboro’s Rian Stull and Ronan Mencia both registered sacks, while Shawn Smith forced two fumbles.
The Tribe (1-0) open up play in the Keystone Division on Friday with a road game at Gettysburg (0-1), a team coming off a 27-15 loss to Chambersburg. The Blue Devils (0-1) kick off Colonial Division action on Friday with a road game at Susquehanna Township (1-0), a squad that blasted off for a 42-14 victory over South Western last weekend.
HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL STANDINGS
Mid-Penn Commonwealth: CD East (1-0 overall, 0-0 division), Chambersburg (1-0, 0-0), State College (1-0, 0-0), Harrisburg (1-0, 0-0), Bishop McDevitt (0-1, 0-0), Altoona (0-1, 0-0), Central Dauphin (0-1, 0-0), Cumberland Valley (0-1, 0-0), Carlisle (0-1, 0-0), Cedar Cliff (0-1, 0-0).
Mid-Penn Keystone: Waynesboro (1-0 overall, 0-0 division), Hershey (1-0, 0-0), Mifflin County (1-0, 0-0), Mechanicsburg (1-0, 0-0), Palmyra (1-0, 0-0), Red Land (1-0, 0-0), Gettysburg (0-1, 0-0), Lower Dauphin (0-1, 0-0), Northern York (0-1, 0-0), Shippensburg (0-1, 0-0).
Mid-Penn Capital: Line Mountain (1-0 overall, 0-0 division), Newport (1-0, 0-0), Juniata (1-0, 0-0), James Buchanan (1-0, 0-0), Steel High (0-0, 0-0), Halifax (0-1, 0-0), Camp Hill (0-1, 0-0), Susquenita (0-1, 0-0), Upper Dauphin (0-1, 0-0).
Mid-Penn Colonial: Big Spring (1-0 overall, 0-0 division), Boiling Springs (1-0, 0-0), Susquehanna Township (1-0, 0-0), West Perry (1-0, 0-0), Middletown (1-0, 0-0), East Pennsboro (0-1, 0-0), Greencastle-Antrim (0-1, 0-0), Milton Hershey (0-1, 0-0), Trinity (0-1, 0-0).
Washington County: Boonsboro (0-0), Clear Spring (0-0), Hancock (0-0), North Hagerstown (0-0), Saint James (0-0), Smithsburg (0-0), South Hagerstown (0-0), Williamsport (0-0).
Friday, Aug. 22
Scores
Chambersburg 27, Gettysburg 15
Waynesboro 27, Greencastle-Antrim 21
